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Friday, May 30, 2014

Cheer to the freakin' weekend #MidwestBlogger! Check out what we're loving this week. And remember, if you have a great link for next Friday, send it to us at MidwestStyleBloggers@gmail.com with the subject line "Friday Link Up" for a chance to be featured. Cheer blogger babes!

1. Our co-founder Sam of The Brunette One is getting married tomorrow! Follow the hashtag #LoveTheMcClellends for major wedding coverage. Cheers to Sam!

2. We are kind of obsessed with food blogs. Food bloggers are so talented. They can cook and take amazing photos. Check out this yummy veg vendesday recipe from Kori & Dayne of The Kitchen Blend.

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Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Hi Everyone, We've got a very cool blogger opportunity for Chicago area bloggers this Saturday with Lands' End and their Getaway Tour event with an opportunity to interview a Glamour magazine glambassador & swimsuit fit expert, VIP gift bag & promotion on the Lands' End twitter page.

It’s swimsuit season and to make swimsuit
shopping as enjoyable as a day at the beach, Lands' End is bringing the
ultimate swimsuit experience to Old Orchard Mall in Skokie, IL (right outside of Chicago)!The event will offer complimentary
professional swimsuit fittings, style tips and a chance to shop for the perfect
swimsuit.

Here are the details if you're interested in covering the event for your blog:

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Regardless of platform, there is a very simple and easy way to install a favicon. A few things to note before you make any changes to your blog.

Make sure you back up your posts and your template (you can do both easily in Blogger, but for WordPress you can only back up your posts automatically).

If you had your site designed by a designer, then they should have designed a favicon. If it is not working, then you should ask them to fix it. Most designers and developers have clauses in their contract about clients editing the site after the site has been installed. You want to run this by your designer just in case.

Step 1. Take a square version of your logo (either as a gif, jpeg, or png file) and convert it into a .ico file. I use Favicon-generator.org to convert files for me. Make sure to download the generated favicon.

FOR WORDPRESS

Step 2: Upload the favicon to your images or media folder. Click the image and copy the URL for the image.

Replace “IMAGE URL” with the URL of your image. Click save, and your favicon should be visible!

**If you are making any changes to your WordPress site, you should be doing it in a child theme. When there is a WordPress or theme update, you will likely lose any changes to the code you make. That being said, if you think the solution is to avoid updating, updating the site is essential to protecting the overall security of your site, and I would strongly recommend against not updating.

FOR BLOGGER

Step 2: Go to LAYOUT < Click “Edit” in the FAVICON box. Upload your image. It might take a few moments, but your favicon should be visible.

If you are having any issues adding a favicon, send me an email, and I can check out your site for you!

Do you have tech or design questions you would like answered? "Techie Tuesdays" is a weekly series written by Lindsay Humes of White Oak Creative and The Garden Apt. In order to make this series as beneficial to Midwest Bloggers, you can email your specific questions to Lindsay at lindsay@wocreative.com and she will answer them in her weekly series.

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Monday, May 26, 2014

I was finishing up college, feeling fully unfulfilled, and looking to do something in which I was actually interested.2) What’s the greatest thing that’s come out of blogging?

Feeling like I can be myself.

I'm really open (read: immature/unprofessional) on my blog- about my life, my thoughts on the fashion world, my qualms about the industry, my social awkwardness, etc - and all the while I've made these amazing connections. It's true motivation to keep being (buzz-word alert) authentic.

3) When you’re not blogging, what can you be found doing?

Working & socializing. I really like wine, and I like my job. Occasionally I'll pick up the guitar and pretend to write a song. I love taking pictures. I'm pretty content meeting mildly fashion-related people around town and just talking. A lot. It's a whole new world for me, and I could philosophize about clothes n' Instagram followers all day.4) If you were stranded on a desert island, what would be the one thing you would take with you?

Probably my guitar. And I'd etch short essays on it with a sharpened branch.

5) What’s the one piece of advice you would share with bloggers just starting out?

Ignore your inhibitions. Say "whatever" out loud every time you're embarrassed or self-conscious. People think you're cool if you think you're cool. Or they don't, in which case you resort to the "whatever" thing.6) What’s your “can’t live without” piece in your closet, kitchen, home etc?

Hm. Black ankle booties? Is that super boring? I just don't know what I'd wear if I didn't own them.

7) On a Friday night, what can you be found doing?

Internet-stalking, listening to Spotify too loud for my studio-apartment neighbors, and eventually drinking wine at some woodsy/dungeony-ish bar.8) How do you balance blogging with a work/social life?

I don't. I used to be awesome - a post a day, but because I'm kind of obsessive about having a point to all of my blog posts, and I also can't not sleep, I'm struggling a bit. I can't tell you how many times I've fallen asleep with my laptop in my ... lap.9) What’s your favorite quote? Or what’s a quote that describes you?

"All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us." Thank you, white wizard.10) What’s your dream job if you haven’t landed it yet?

Dream dream DREAM job?? Traveling the world and writing an honest, blunt, and likely overly-wordy column about how fashion affects and is affected by different people around the world. I'd settle for video. I also kind of like talking to cameras.11) Guilty pleasures?

Jelly beans? That's not guilty enough though, I suppose.

High School Musical?

Granny panties?

Taylor Swift?

Shall I keep going?12) What’s your favorite “little thing” in life?

When a guy you like says your name after a really short sentence. Summer night bonfires with alcohol. The really sugar-filled sparkly piece of watermelon. Kissing my dog in that spot right between his eyes. Conversations with kids about Disney. Mr. Darcy's monologue in the rain.

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Friday, May 23, 2014

TGIF! It's the weekend #MidwestBlogger! Check out these four
amazing bloggers that are inspiring us this week. Here's another edition of
Friday Favorites Link Up. Have a great link for next Friday? Send it to us at
MidwestStyleBloggers@gmail.com with the subject line "Friday Link Up"
for a chance to be featured.

1. Um how yummy do these strawberry margarita cupcakes look? Check out the recipe from Angela on Tulips & Rain.

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Tuesday, May 20, 2014

Lindsay of White Oak Creative is back with another edition of Tuesday Tips! This time, she's chatting about her re-disgn of our very own Midwest Bloggers site {and doesn't it look fantastic?} She cleaned up our coding faux pas and made out site sleek and streamlined, all while keeping it oh-so "Midwest Bloggers". A BIG thank you to her for all her hard work!

All elements of your blog should reflect your overall brand. The key is consistency! As you may have noticed, the Midwest Bloggers blog site looks a little cleaner. I worked with Maya and Lauren to clean up the site, so that it could leverage current branding from their Midwest Blogger Square-Space site.

Matching Header & Navigation

The previous MB blogger site had the old header, a quick and easy fix. If you have a website and blog, you want to make sure that your header is the same. As for navigation, even though the Midwest Blogger site is built on a different platform, the menu bar should be consistent. I organized the blogger menu bar to reflect the website, and I also matched fonts and colors (teal for links, red on hover, using the Google Web Font "Cabin"). This navigation bar adjustment is huge: regardless of the site, the user doesn't have to search for a page, thus improving user experience.

Favicon

A site without a favicon is an incomplete site in the web designing world. For blogger, it is very easy to enter a favicon image. Go to your dashboard, "Layout" and click "edit" favicon on the top left. I recommend uploading a favicon file (.ico), and you can use sites such as Favicon-Generator to take a square png or jpeg file and convert it. When selecting the favicon, I chose just the heart as it is the main symbol. Text is nearly impossible to read in a favicon, and I would also opt against text unless it is 1-2 letters.

Stylized & Active Buttons:

Typically, buttons, especially for search and subscribe are not designed. To format and stylize the buttons for follow by email and searching, you have to have a pretty good understanding of CSS. For the Midwest Blogger site, I made sure that all the buttons (including social media) were red, and when someone hovers over them they turn "teal". Also with the social media icons, I created custom ones that reinforced the "heart" theme. If these elements don't follow with your overall look and feel, they have a tendencies to look out of place or incomplete.

Align Post Content & Text

One of the biggest things I did in the site redesign was align the page. First, I built the site at 960px wide, typically the standard. The 960 grid system is really popular, especially in regards to mobile sites. Responsive design wasn't considered in this site as blogger has it already built in. Secondly, I aligned the images and the text using CSS. All images in the post will be the full-width. Whether an image is 800 px or 1200px, the image will always get resized proportionally. When having this feature added, it is important to save images larger than what the max is (in this case 625px). It is better to render down than to render up (blurry images). I also made sure that all the text would align justify. If writers of the post wanted to center the text, they can over ride it in the individual post. These two features ensure consistent presentation within each and every post.

Custom Footer

Very often, especially with blogger sites, posts footers use the typical blogger footer. Not only does it look out of place, it is a missed opportunity. A custom footer is a great way to close out your post, plus it allows for custom social sharing. A defined footer delinates between posts more clearly than the standard version.

Do you have tech or design questions you would like answered? "Techie Tuesdays" is a weekly series written by Lindsay Humes of White Oak Creative and The Garden Apt. In order to make this series as beneficial to Midwest Bloggers, you can email your specific questions to Lindsay atlindsay@wocreative.com and she will answer them in her weekly series.

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Monday, May 19, 2014

I started The Closet Confessional in September 2012 after I was in remission from cancer. After getting diagnosed, I started another blog, TheThunderStealer.com, as a way to own my course of treatment and put Cancer in its proper place in my life. It proved to be a huge relief to have an outlet to channel my voice. But, after enduring 9 months of treatments, I really didn't want to be just “the Cancer Girl." My experience with cancer allowed me the freedom to spend more time pursuing my passions and less time on other less rewarding work. Add to all that was a serious lack of conversation about fashion in Detroit. I wanted to help start that dialogue.

2) What’s the greatest thing that’s come out of blogging?

Blogging has helped me find me voice. As an introvert, it can be difficult to express myself, but blogging has given me the platform to be opinionated and bold (and not just in my outfits!).

3) When you’re not blogging, what can you be found doing?

Walking along the Detroit Riverwalk with my Dog. Sipping wine on my rooftop deck with my girlfriends. Exploring Detroit, and the world, with my husband.

4) If you were stranded on a desert island, what would be the one thing you would take with you?

A solar paneled charging station with Wifi Beacon. I'd put it inside my Mary Poppins bag with life's other goodies -music, books, a picnic basket, and my lapdog--because the bag is the one thing I'm bringing.

5) What’s the one piece of advice you would share with bloggers just starting out?

Find your voice. Don’t try and mimic other bloggers. Use original content (something I’ve gotten much better at since I started). And have fun! Because if you’re not having fun, what’s the point?

I should say a pair of shoes or something about fashion, but the reality is, it’s my juicer. Staying healthy is a definite priority for me and I start every morning with a green juice. Plus, for those nights I’m not being my healthiest, I make a mean hangover juice.

7) On a Friday night, what can you be found doing?

Drinking wine, dancing around my loft, and cooking with my husband and friends. That or lying in bed watching reruns of The Office.

8) How do you balance blogging with a work/social life?

I don't really “balance.” Sure, I get off balance sometimes, but I try to just live out who I am and who I want to be through all the things I love. So far it’s worked out.

9) What’s your favorite quote? Or what’s a quote that describes you?

"You can't dance if you've got too much muck in your head." -Yoko Ono

10) What’s your dream job if you haven’t landed it yet?

I hope to open a shop in Detroit in the near future. Detroit is going through a rapid transformation and I hope to be able to contribute to that with my own retail boutique. And in the meantime, keep writing.